Parliament has summoned senior Ministry of Education officials over excess textbooks worth millions of shillings that have been supplied to national schools, despite the institutions indicating the number of students per subject.
The National Assembly has summoned Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba, Principal Secretary John Ololtuaa, and Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development chief executive Prof Charles Ong’ondo to explain why hundreds of excess textbooks were supplied to C1 schools when sub-county schools are lacking the essential reading materials.
The decision follows discovery by the Public Investment Committee on Education and Governance that schools such as Kagumo High School and Baricho High School had received excess textbooks over the last four years.
The committee chaired by Luanda MP Dick Maungu was shocked to learn that Kagumo High School alone had received a total of 6,668 excess textbooks from 2021 to 2025.
Baricho High School had received 426 excess set books in the financial year 2024/25, according to findings by the Auditor General Nancy Gathungu.
An average price for Geography textbook for Grade 10 is Sh1,093 going by prices of four main publishers, Kenya Literature Bureau (Sh870), Longhorn Publishers (Sh1,102), Distinction Geography (Sh1,150), and Mentor Geography (Sh1,250).
This means that taxpayers lost Sh7,288,124 for the excess 6,668 text books that were supplied to Kagumo High School over the last four years and which were lying in the stores unutilised.
Kagumo High School Principal Silas Mwririgi said the Ministry of Education has been distributing textbooks to public secondary schools through Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD).
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba during a past event.
Photo credit: Wilfred Nyangaresi | Nation Media Group
“They have been distributing books to schools and we are asked to sign to confirm receipt. They sometimes deliver the textbooks at 6am and they say we sign and pick,” Dr Mwirigi said.
“If we say they are excess, they just say sign, pick and keep the excess textbooks. They are government books. We have an instance where the school requisitioned 300 textbooks for Geography lessons but 500 textbooks were delivered.”
Mr Maungu said schools should refuse taking in excess textbooks given that there are schools without a single textbook for learners.
“We will summon the CS, PS and KICD because this matter is beyond school principals. The issue of Ministry officials just dropping books to C1 schools must end. There must be reverse logistics in the supply of excess books,” Mr Maungu said.
“It begs the question why the Ministry and KICD supply excess textbooks when there is a National Education Management System (Nemis). Why is it that the Ministry has been paying less capitation but supplying excess textbooks? We will find answers from the CS.”
School principals are for the first time appearing before Parliament to respond to findings of the Auditor General on their financial statements.
Auditor General Nancy Gathungu said examination of records of Kagumo High School for financial year 2021 revealed that the KICD distributed 7,271 textbooks to the school while only 4,943 books were issued to the students, resulting in two 2,328 excess textbooks in the school store.
“ln the circumstances, value for money on the excess textbooks could not be confirmed,” Ms Gathungu said.
The school, located in Muranga County also received excess textbooks in the financial year 2022 of 438.
The audit showed that KICD distributed 560 set books to the school while only 122 books were issued to the students, resulting in 438 excess textbooks in the school store.
Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development (KICD) Director and CEO Prof Charles Ochieng' Ong'ondo speaking during the launch of value-based Education programme in Nairobi on April 2, 2026.
Photo credit: Lucy Wanjiru | Nation Media Group
In the financial year 2023, Kagumo High School received 1,686 set books while only 808 were required resulting in an unexplained excess textbook of 878 in the school store.
“During the year under review, the Ministry of Education distributed 1,498 set books to the school while only 1,094 books were issued to the students, resulting in 404 excess textbooks in the school store,” Ms Gathungu said in Kagumo High School books of account for the year ended June 2024.
In the financial year 2025, Kagumo High School received 7,767 textbooks for different subjects with only 5,551 of the books issued to the students, leaving a balance of 2,216 excess textbooks in the school store.
At Baricho Boys High School, Moses Muiruri, the principal told MPs that the institution received an excess supply of books during the 2023/24 financial year.
He said the school received 3,228 set books when 2,802 were required resulting in an excess of 426 books still lying in the store.
However, Mr Muiruri told MPs that the Ministry of Education, through KICD, distributed less text books during the year under review.
He said 11,100 textbooks were delivered to the school, while the students’ requirement was 17,759 books, resulting in a shortage of 6,659 books.
“On the excess 426 set books, we donated the same to nearby public schools that are in a lower level than C1,” Mr Muiruri said.
Ms Gathungu had questioned the excess 426 set books arguing that value for money could not be confirmed.
Loreto Girls High School principal Lena Ngesa told MPs that the school does not have control of the number of books supplied to the institution since this is done from the Ministry of Education through the County Director of Education, Sub County Director of Education until the books arrive at the Sub County director of Education office where the principals collect them.
At the Alliance Girls High School, no textbooks were received by the school in the financial year ending June 2025.
Ms Gathungu said available records indicated that the last consignment was received in January, 2024 for Form 3 and Form 4 classes.
“Physical verification at the stores established that textbooks are issued directly to students upon receipt, with no significant balances held in store,” Ms Gathungu said.
“However, audit review noted that the school relies on manual records to track issuance of textbooks, with no comprehensive or updated register to monitor individual student allocations, returns or balances.”
She said there were no records maintained to capture lost, damaged or unreturned textbooks and such instances are only identified at the point of student clearance.
